


Ghostly Heart ; Human Mind

by Browa123



Category: Danny Phantom
Genre: A Fanfic Inspired By the Reality of Virtuality over on FF.Net, Angst, Fluff, Gen, Jack and Maddie screw stuff up again, Jazz is going to have a therapy field day, Not Phantom Planet Compliant, Science that isn't accurate at all, no phantom planet
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-01-26
Updated: 2019-02-16
Packaged: 2019-10-16 07:12:00
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 6,571
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17545076
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Browa123/pseuds/Browa123
Summary: Jack and Maddie have made a public display of finally capturing the infamous Danny Phantom. Though a slew of protesters stand in their wake, the paranormal scientists are ready to prove once and for all that all ghosts are evil, by taking a few volunteers into Phantom's mental matrix to show how evil the ghost truly is!Now trapped within the mind of Amity Park's most elusive ghost, will the Fentons and Volunteers be able to escape, or they doomed to be an unconscious part of Phantom forever? And will Team Phantom be able to keep the truth from those who risk uncovering it?





	1. Into the Mental Matrix

The roars of the crowd and booing was loud as Jack and Maddie stood over the town, at city hall, with news of their greatest achievement.

Between the two was a rather large containment cube, transparent but indestructible. The ghost inside didn't make any move to escape though, it sat merely there, piercing green eyes peeking over its knees as it stared. The infamous Phantom, finally captured at the hands of Amity Park's very own Fenton family. The ghost was holding its back against the cage, curled in on itself as its arms held its knees.

The crowd around continued to jeer, holding up signs of protest for the release of their hero, angrily demanding Phantom be let go. The Fentons still refused to, after all it must be faking that vulnerable position to make it look defenseless. Using it curse to rile the crowd into freeing it so it can strike, as clever as usual for a ghost. But all ghosts were the same, all ghosts were evil, and the Fentons were here to prove it once and for all.

"If you continue to insist Phantom to be released, then we have no choice but to prove the evil that exists within his hero act" Maddie had declared using a megaphone. It's always good to have one handy. The crowd continued to boo as Jack prepared the equipment, excitedly ready to ramble on about what it does so the entirety of Amity can hear how great his and Maddie's inventions were. Contained in the box was a headband and a set of helmet receptors.

"Ladies and Gentlemen, behold the latest in scientific ghost genius!" Jack exclaimed as he held up one of the helmets, silencing the crowd. He never needs a megaphone himself, unless he needs to get the point about Santa across. "These babies are all components of the new Fenton Mental Matrix. The band attaches to a ghost's unique core, while the helmets allow wearers to travel inside and explore the post-human consciousness that makes the spook up!" Jack waves the helmet around for all the crowd to see.

Murmurs follow the crowd as the excited hunter continues to go on about the Fenton Mental Matrix. Phantom in turn looks a bit horrified about what this could do to him, eliciting a grin from Maddie. "Scared to be exposed for what you are, Phantom? Soon the whole town will know you have them under a farce," she hisses at him with satisfaction. "Who am I kidding? Ghosts don't feel fear!" Maddie and Jack both laugh at that while Phantom subtly curls further in on himself.

"Now, unfortunately the process of entering a mental matrix in the ghost's core does not harm the core in any way, due to the tests we've run on other specimens," Jack continues, "but the findings were accurate! Spooks have a dominant personality based on their obsession, and minor mixes of other bits of memory to replicate emotion without actually feeling it. I'm sure the same will be of Phantom when we enter his core," the hunter states, reaching in to the ghost containment cube. He grabs Phantom's wrist, causing the ghost to yelp as a metal band is attached to his arm. Jack leaves the cage, grinning as the ghost rubs at the wrist the band was attached to.

"Now, I know if we were to enter alone, you all wouldn't be convinced by the time we came out. So, right now we will offer a chance for volunteers to join us when entering Phantom's mental matrix," Maddie calls to the crowd. Phantom scratches at his wrist, to him the band is irritating his arm, and he wants it off before anyone goes poking around his ghost core. In the meantime, the Fentons begin selecting volunteers mostly from the crowd of protesters. 

In the end, Sam, Tucker and Dash were chosen as the most vocal in begging for Phantom's release. Maddie thanked heavens that her son was at home and not here protesting on Phantom's behalf with his friends. Valerie Gray, another of Danny's friends who had a strong disliking of the ghost had stepped up as a volunteer. Jack was glad to have someone so sensible about ghosts in the crowd and gladly lead her onstage. Jazz was allowed to come too, as she nervously babbled about the opportunities for ecto-psychology in order to convince her parents to let her come along. The final selected volunteer was Mr. Lancer, as another trustworthy adult would be needed to watch the children as they explored Phantom's core.

Each of the brave explorers were equipped with Fenton Mental Matrix helmets, as they seated themselves in order to prepare. Jack held up the remote, happily babbling about each of the functions as the helmets hummed to life. The anxious crowd watched from the sidelines, as Phantom himself gave pleading looks to his undercover team. Sam, Tucker and Jazz all gave him a look of understanding. They'd protect his secret at all costs. 

Dash looked over to him as well with a confident smile, he'd protect Phantom like the ghost had him. 

The adults exchanged unaware glances, Jack and Maddie excited most of all as Lancer prepared himself to supervise the teens. 

Valerie ended up only shooting Phantom a glare as she set herself up.

"Alright team! Let's go make some history!" Jack declared proudly as he smashed the activation button on the remote. As soon as it happened, Phantom screamed as a shock ran up his wrist and flowed into his core. The helmets lit up with an intense glow as the ghost clutched at his burning center. Extreme heat flashed to extreme cold, and Phantom properly passed out, unconscious in his containment cage as the Fenton Mental Matrix glowed brighter altogether.

There was a loud crash and then silence. The light dimmed, and Phantom was left alone on stage, unconscious. The containment unit was blown to bits in the explosion, and the brave volunteers were nowhere to be found.

-

Maddie was the first to awaken.

There was an awful burning pain in her chest. What had happened? She forces her eyes open, taking in the surrounding area. It was dark around her, like the midnight sky. There were whisps of light around her, like stars, as the path around her remained broken, cracked and floating in suspension with no reasoning to their placement other than a long and winding path in front of her. In the distance lay the skyline of a city, the moon hanging low over it, making the celestial rock appear bigger.

It was all coming back to her as whisps of green ectoplasm hung over her head, high in the sky. This was the mindscape of the infamous Phantom. Her's and Jack's invention had worked again, but everything had felt off. First things first, she didn't know why her chest was aching. In the other tests, she had felt no pain entering the mental matrix of the ghosts they had tested on. Secondly, this mental projection had no resemblance to the ghost zone aside from the ectoplasmic whisps above her head acting more like the Aurora Borealis than actual ectoplasm.

A groan sounded beside her, and Maddie was quick to get her husband on his feet. "Sufferin' Spooks, that hurt..." He too was gripping at his chest. So it wasn't just Maddie who was in pain. She helped Jack to his feet while he took in the mindscape, and quickly started attending to the volunteers around where they had ended up.

"Ugh... man does my chest hurt..." Tucker had commented, sitting up and looking around. "Wow, it looks like space got all tripped out before we got launched in the rocket here, and then it blew up with us on it!" he then comments. The boy gets to his feet, reaching into his pocket for his PDA, to find it not there.

Tucker ended up screaming in agony when Maddie had said his PDA was outside Phantom's mindscape, and that he couldn't use it until they got back. It got everyone awake, as Dash laughed at the Techno Geek's suffering, before he held his chest and coughed. More signs that something was off when venturing into Phantom's core. Everyone was on their feet moments later, and all of them complained about chest pains.

"Mrs. Fenton, I was assured this trip would be harmless," Lancer had commented as he stretched out his back. The problem was that it is supposed to be harmless. They shouldn't be able to feel this pain, but at least it was slowly fading away. And then there's the issue of how this place looks. In every other subject the Fenton Mental Matrix was tested on, every mindscape resembled the Ghost Zone, with doors and islands abound floating in ectoplasmic space. This place just looked like how a kid would imagine space to be, without any islands abound, but broken paths and a faraway skyline under moonlight. It was unnatural and wrong.

Some of the ectoplasm in the air suddenly began to move off the swirling path of the Northern Lights imitation it was creating, spiraling toward the ground in green and purple swirls of paranormal light. A golden staff began to form, wrapped in green and with a small amount of ice blue sitting at the tip.

"See here kids, that staff is the mark of the main apparition in a ghost's core," Jack had said excitedly as the staff continued to form out of the air. The main tie to a ghost's obsession, the strongest feeling in a core left behind in the post-human mental impression. The very limited sense of personality in a ghost was characterized in this one apparition as it formed. So when it came out wrong, warning bells rang in the heads of the Fentons.

The staff of the main apparition was broken on the bottom end.

Beside that point, the main apparition was wearing a cape of some kind. And Phantom himself didn't wear a cape at all. Main Apparitions had been an exact replica of how the ghost looked in the physical realm in every other test. In every other test, their core staff wasn't split. That staff was supposed to be complete, symmetrical. But at the bottom of the aparation's gold staff, was a torn green ribbon and shattered end.

Luminescent green eyes looked over the crowd that had entered, before a confident smirk reached the lips of Phantom. "Well well! I was certainly not expecting such a wide plethora of guests here!" He knocked the broken end of his staff on the ground a few times, adopting a confident posture and floating a few inches above the broken ground. "But I'm afraid such esteemed members of Amity Park should not be wandering lost around a place like this. That is why I have come to assist in leading you to the exit, so you may return to the realm in which you belong!" the specter was loud, so much more loud than the real Phantom. Another wrong thing.

Sam, Tucker and Jazz began to whisper conspiringly, a huge grin finding itself on the psychologist's face as Sam recounts a story in coded language about the Fenton Ghost Catcher from a year ago. Dash in the meantime took in Phantom's apparition with awe as the ghost stood confidently with a wide and fanged smirk, chest puffed out to make himself look tough while his hair and cape seemed to blow in a nonexistent breeze.

"So you're not going to attack us for invading your core?" Jack found himself blurting, to the Phantom letting out a deep laugh.

"Heavens no, my reasonably proportioned guest! It is against my nature and drive to attack the innocent! The best option presented is to lead you out before any major incidents happen! Lest my company get hurt by the darker corners of my most suppressed mind! Come along then, all of you. The exit is a ways away, but we will return you to reality in time!" Phantom continued to shout confidently.

"Ugh, do you have to yell everything you say?! At least the Phantom I know understands when to keep quiet!" Valerie groans, already more annoyed with this heroic sounding Phantom than the more quiet and elusive spook. This tryhard is way worse than the real thing.

"Hasty huntresses, young Valerie! Do not fear, for I am in the intent of causing no more harm intentionally to your welfare. Many misunderstandings have taken place over time before I had complete control over what I wished to do in spectral form, but rest assured I have all but mastered control over the basics and will do anything to ensure any more issues will not arise!" is how Phantom responded, still yelling almost obnoxiously.

"Wow, you seriously don't know how to have a social conversation Phantom," Valerie hissed at him, ignoring the so called promise. As if, stupid spook.

"Well, indeed!" the specter indicated the broken half of his staff. "For I am only one half of the Phantom you know! The other half of me is unfit to lead you home, as his lack of responsibility would surely get you into more trouble. I, on the other and more dashing hand, will not let petty distractions stray us from our intended path. Come now, we have dawdled long enough! We must make way for the dreamscape and through the control center to get to the exit and you all back to your intended reality!" Phantom declared.

"Half an apparition?" Maddie muttered to Jack. The idea was impossible, because these illusions only had one emotion. They couldn't be split. But the busted staff and wrongness of "Phantom" in front of them lead it to be true. Both agreed that the best way to get answers was to forge ahead after the half of a ghost. Even thinking of it sounded wrong in her head, there wasn't such a thing as half ghosts...

"What caused his core to split?" Jack mumbled after her as they moved.

_

Danny groaned as he woke up.

His head was still kissing the pavement at the step of city hall, and a crowd had gathered around him. Paulina was at his side, causing him to jump a bit in shock.

"There you go, ghost boy! No more stupid unfashionable bracelet to keep you unconscious! Everyone worked together to get it off you, but I did the most so I think I deserve a kiss!" she exclaimed, causing the halfa to flush a deep green.

"Uhh, I uhh, th-thanks but no thanks...." He stuttered before using his invisibility to vanish from the crowd. He doesn't have the confidence to face that many people staring at him all at once. He flies off to go back home, reverting to human form. His head and chest sting a bit, and he can't really remember how he got to city hall again in the first place. Danny finds himself groaning at the thought of someone staging another kidnapping of the mayor, as much as he hates Vlad. Come to think of it, Vlad would orchestrate something like that to make him look bad.

Danny finds he can't remember a thing since patrol last night. Must have been a long day. He phases into the house invisibly to avoid being spotted by his parents, who aren't home today. A quick peek in the lab confirms this, and their latest invention is missing.

"Guess they went to go show it off or something," he chuckles before heading upstairs. Maybe he can play some Doomed and try and catch up with Sam's high score today, indulge himself.

He can save those responsibilities for later...


	2. Thinking About It

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'll be honest. I wasn't expecting this to do so well on the first chapter alone! Thanks everyone, and I was going to wait for 200 hits to write chapter two, but I had the urge to get it out now. Hope you enjoy the next chapter!

"Come along now! If we keep an even pace, we should reach the central core in a few days time!" Phantom exclaimed as he lead the group.

"A few days?! It's that complex in here?!" Jack had exclaimed in turn, baffled. The ghosts they had explored barely had a few rooms, but judging by the city horizon in the in the distance, it was hardly fancy wallpaper if what Phantom had said was true. Did this relate to the massive amounts of Phantom's power?

"Yes, a few days in the least if we keep pace. It would be well and all a few hours if I could fly there, but the risks of leaving any of you unattended are too great at this time. So we walk," Phantom declared, keeping a steady eye on everything around them. Ectoplasm wisps spiraled around the group, whispering in a tone too inaudible to hear. Thoughts moving through the core like an electrical current, the occasional spark to move from one string of plasm to another.

"Well, this is quite fascinating to witness. Those green wisps are almost acting like neurons in the brain with how they move those sparks around," Lancer pointed out, watching the display in the sky around them. Phantom nodded along.

"Yes, those sparks contain outside information pertaining to the main thought patterns. Though a dazzle to look at, the mindscape even here is important to the functioning of thought for the main body," the ghost elaborated, swirling some of the plasm nearby them with his staff. "They travel from here all the way to the main core, where the sparks are sorted into where they belong, taken to the Master of Emotion, where they then send the signal back to elicit a reaction from the body in turn, such is the way this world works."

"Amazing, Look Mads! Phantom's totally replicated how the brain works in his core!" Jack excitedly finds himself bouncing again. Phantom was clearly no normal ghost since the beginning, but to see it's complexity to this extent was quite the breakthrough. The things paranormal experts like him and his wife could learn on this little excursion alone was groundbreaking!

"It is quite... unique," Maddie replies, watching another spark pass by, whispering and moving so quickly she can't hear a thing. Phantom chuckles at how off put she appears.

"There is no need to worry about my uniqueness in this place. The mind is complex and never resting, if you dwell on it too long you'll only give your own brain a headache," the staff taps on the ground again, pushing away a piece of the floating road into the distance. "Ah, here we are! Now, all of you line up, I've found us a way to get to the central core faster!"

Phantom points out a building that just materialized nearby. There's a loud whistle, and train tracks appear seemingly from nowhere as well, sparks running along the side of what was a fast approaching train. It screeches to a halt in front of the building, as Phantom directs the group toward it.

"Ladies and Gentlemen, the Train of Thought. It appears and disappears at random places all over the mindscape, but can take us right to the central core in time faster than even my own flying!" Phantom introduces, as the monochrome locomotive hisses steaming blue wisps from it's engine. "Come along now, it won't stay long. We can sight-see from the windows, I assure you," Phantom declares as he leads the group into the train cars.

"Central core, please!" The ghost shouts to the engine as he boards. He turns back to the group. "It is recommended that you stay in your seats for the duration of the trip, though it will get us where we're going the train has an unpredictable course and will loop and swerve randomly," warns the apparition. He gives the group a fanged smile as they sit in the relatively comfortable train car.

There's another wispy blue whistle, and the train begins to move again, starting slow but slowly picking up. "We get to the central core from the top of the cityscape ahead! Hang on tightly, everyone!" he shouts over the chugging of the engine. The train picks up more speed as more tracks form in the carrying wisps, like Phantom much had. They fade behind the train, and things get faster. Sparks run along the edge of the forming and disappearing tracks, moving faster than the train to get to the central core.

The ride is quite pleasant thus far, aside from the dizzying speeds and sharp turns. It's more of a roller coaster ride then a train ride, but really it's not all bad. Well, unless you're Dash, Jack or Lancer. All three were turning green themselves in the train car. At least they'd make it home faster than walking, or so they thought.

Suddenly, a massive amount of sparks, not unlike that of a thundercloud of ectoplasm appears around the train, and it begins to shake and shudder on the tracks.

"Runaway Railroads!" Phantom suddenly exclaims, looking frightened. "Everyone, hang on! An increase in mental activity ahead!" he pulls the brakes on the train using his half of a staff.

"What's that supposed to mean?!" Dash exclaims worriedly, gripping at his seat and looking a bit shaken.

"We're on a train of thought right?" Jazz asks, as if realizing something. "If we're on the train, and there's an increase of mental activity ahead...." she jolts. "Listen to Phantom and hang on!" she screams, gripping her own seat. Everyone else follows through with the request with that exclamation.

"What's going on?!" Jack calls to his daughter, panicked as the train starts to jolt and shake uncontrollably. It's having a hard time keeping on the tracks while sparks flood them from every angle.

"Danny- I mean Phantom's train of thought is derailing!" Jazz calls back. Everyone holds tighter as Phantom continues to try and stop the train before it falls off the tracks. This is not going to end well...

The locomotive reaches the peak of the rails before the tracks fade out from under it, and the train vanishes in midair, leaving them all falling.

-

Danny finds himself whooping as he defeats the final boss in the third game he's finished today.

He drinks another round of soda, and his room is a bit of a mess, but he's otherwise quite pleased today. No parents home yet, Jazz is off somewhere, and school was just cancelled because Lancer is missing too. 

More himself time, that's always good. He'd be more concerned about Sam and Tucker being missing today, but it's the first time he's indulged himself rather than deal with all the pressure of being a superhero in a while, he's going to enjoy it.

Suddenly, his ghost sense goes off, dragging him away from his thoughts. Danny finds himself groaning, he so does not want to deal with any ghosts today. But he has to, it's his responsibility and all.

"Going Ghost," he mutters, before taking his ghost form and flying out the window in order to deal with whatever is going on out there...

-

"Look, I know Phantom isn't here right now, but do you have to keep nagging me for him?"

A figure in a green jacket and red cap sighs exasperatedly as he speaks the words, lounging back in the thick leather chair and twirling a staff. This one is purple with a green light adorning the top, but is otherwise identical to the one Phantom was holding earlier. A figure with white hair, green eyes and a formal suit stands across from the other figure, putting a hand to his head.

"Must I answer that, Mr. Fenton?" the suited figure sighs, not giving up on the strong posture.

"Yeah yeah I get it," Fenton replies lackadaisically, fiddling with the gold staff in his hands. "While Phantom takes care of whatever happened to our core, your in charge," he groans. "Honestly, you two are just about the same level of stuck up. Why do we have to get through it like this, Sense of Responsibility?"

"It's your duty, Fenton. Being human, you can ignore the desire to protect all you want but-" the suited figure starts.

"It's my responsibility, I got it. Yawn, snore, boring, moving along," Fenton states flippantly, waving a hand. "Why can't we do something selfish once in a while? All you and Phantom nag on about is the 'greater good' and 'sacrificing our free time' and 'saving lives' and I get that. We're doing the right thing. But what about doing something for us more often and letting someone else take over?"

"Will we be having this discussion again?" Sense of Responsibility sighs.

Fenton knocks him over the head with his staff before lounging about again. The suited Phantom only sighs, hoping the other half will return soon.

-

"Is everyone alive?" Valerie finds herself groaning as she picks herself out of the dirt.

The groans of response encourage her, as she looks to Phantom halfway submerged in the dirt. He'd swooped in to slow the decent as much as possible, but the sparking thoughts had disoriented him and they had all fallen pretty far.

"Suffocating Sparks...." the ghost spit, clearly liking his showy alliterations lately. "When we get to the central core, my other half and I will need to have a long talk," he groans as he pulls himself out intangibly. "I've been gone half a day and things are already falling apart. Should have expected this, but alas, no fixing it now."

Phantom helps everyone to their feet, using the glowing blue light on his staff to cool the area. The numbing cold slowly takes away the pain from the fall.

"Yes well, this power will indeed be convenient when our outer body can wield it. This healing cold is only for a short time, as even I still can barely handle it," the ghost explained as he let the area warm again.

"And here you said you wanted to help us, we could have died in that train crash!" Valerie exclaims angrily, jabbing a finger at Phantom's chest.

"I do want to help you all!" Phantom replied indignantly. "It is not of my fault I cannot control everything that transpires here! I am merely half of the overall subconscious nature of Danny Phantom. This core is too complex for half of a ghost to keep wraps on, and the other emotions, thoughts and masters all argue all the time about what is right and wrong in this plane. Excuse me for attempting to get you out before you get caught in the war that is our mind!" he hisses back.

"But ghosts aren't this complex! You can't have real emotions! You're a ghost!" Maddie exclaims at Phantom.

"Honestly would you all stop calling me just a ghost! It is rude and undignified to do so to someone who isn't one!" the apparition replied, chest puffed and staff at his side. Sam, Tucker and Jazz all collectively tense.

"You're... not a ghost?" Dash finds himself adding.

"Of course not! I'm no mere ghost, all of you! I'm a halfa! And with my fully developed mental consciousness you all are in grave danger of getting mixed the battles of my emotions. Now if you would so kindly keep following me so we can avoid that fate?" Phantom is bitter in his words, but still makes no move to attack. He turns back around and continues to lead the group. 

The rest of Team Phantom dwell on the fact that there's a lot of damage control to do ahead.

"Jack... what did we just get ourselves into...?" Maddie mutters.


	3. Keep an Open Mind

Halfa.

The word had rolled off Phantom's tongue so easily. What it could mean was unknown to those unaware, but the implications are clear. Phantom wasn't a ghost. Comprised of ectoplasm to a degree, yes. But a ghost? No, it was obvious Phantom wasn't a ghost.

The oddities were present since they had all arrived. The pain in their chests, the composition of the mental matrix, the complexity of only being here a short while. Phantom was far too complex, different, to be classified as a ghost. Instead, he had his own classification.

Halfa. Half-a. Half of something. But what?

Valerie had an idea, a sinking feeling ever since Phantom mentioned he wasn't a ghost. Words of the real ghost and not his subconscious projection came to mind. He's not just a ghost. Never just a ghost.

He's also a boy. Just like his cousin. And she was certain what the other half was. Half Human, with a fully developed mental conscious. How did she not see it sooner, after everything that happened the day they rescued Phantom's cousin?

In the meanwhile, Phantom continues to lead the group ahead. "I'll take your silence as compliance in following my perimeters. Thank you, now let's move into the town so we may continue our journey to the central core." He waves his staff in a beckoning manner. 

Everyone numbly seems to follow Phantom now, unsure what to think of the half ghost, or his recent outburst. The city skyline above began to loom as Phantom slowly lead the group into its perimeters. The familiarity of the moonlit town begins to sink in as wide eyes scan the mental recreation of Phantom's lair.

"This is quite the detailed recreation of Amity Park," Maddie notes aloud, and Phantom turns to face her with a bit of a reminiscent smile. His piercing green eyes, otherworldly yet somehow familiar, light up at the huntress's statement.

"Well! It is a fine town to live in! It's small, has plenty of paranormal energy and the people here are quite nice to boot! Shame it continues to be attacked though, most of the town around here is based on my nightly patrol route!" the cheery not-ghost elaborated, waving his staff around.

"Wow, you got over that earlier episode rather quickly," Sam comments dryly. Jazz and Tucker nod. Usually when Danny gets mad, he's hung up on it for the rest of the day. But this Phantom had just let it go as if it was water under the bridge very easily.

"Yes, you are very lucky that I am unlike my other half for the time being. He's... very passionate about what upsets him. Honestly we'd get a lot more done if he wasn't such a stick in the mud," Phantom replies, rolling his eyes a fair bit at the mention of this elusive other half.

"Are you at odds with your other half?" Jazz finds herself asking. It's something that's been bugging her since she got here. At even mentioning this, Phantom can barely hide his grimace, grip tightening on the staff in his hand. He gives his head a disappointed shake.

"I am afraid that is the case. It's always been like that, since we were split into two, I suppose. One body wasn't meant to exist with two brains, after all. Of course, one can go with their gut, but when that gut has the same amount of functionality as the brain in the form of a core, there is bound to be problems in this scale," the ghost tells the group, white gloves beginning to tap on the gold metal of the staff and fiddle with the torn ribbon.

There was clearly something wrong with Phantom if his mental state was constantly at odds with itself. Having two of a functioning mental matrix, a brain and a core in the same body based on one personality... it was pointing clues to what Phantom was half of, like he had classified himself. But the ghost had lost himself again, beginning to rant once more.

"Although, I'd have less of a problem if my other half wasn't the most irresponsible, inconsiderate, indecent, indecisive, insensitive...."

-

"Stubborn, stuck up, bossy excuse for half of me that I hope gets back here soon, or we're all in big trouble!"

Fenton folded his arms around his own, purple decorated gold staff as he sunk deeper into his chair at central core. There's a pout on his face as Responsibility lets out another sigh. How long had it been since Phantom left? He was only supposed to be gone a few hours to take care of business at the core entrance of the mind, but now it had at least been a day, and things were already falling apart.

"I know I'm not smart enough to look after all this crap! I'm only half of a half dead kid, Phantom is supposed to take care of this! I can hardly sort thoughts to the right emotions alone!" the human half whines, clenching his bare fists as he slumps. Even Responsibility is having trouble taking what Fenton can't do, and it's a lot all things considered.

"Perhaps you should go look for Phantom? You could send a few emotions up here to take the ropes while you go and figure out what's holding him up?" Responsibility offered, putting a hand on Fenton's shoulder. The human in question shudders, looking irritated.

"Sounds like even more of a pain in the neck," he hisses, moving his fingers through locks of raven hair. "Besides, our family and friends haven't been heard from all day and it's even starting to concern me! Sure, I love the free time in between fights, but it's not right seeing them gone! I can't leave this place to a few emotions at a time like this!"

"But the state of mentality here will be much worse off if something has happened to your other half, Fenton. I suggest you take the next rest period to look for Phantom while the nearby emotions deal with the main core. You need your other half, as much as you two obviously dislike each other, and you're smart enough to know that," replies Responsibility, taking his hand off Fenton's shoulder. Fenton shudders a minute, before letting out an annoyed huff.

"Fine, but if I'm not back in a day, I'm counting on you to keep this place and the other emotions in here in check," he growls, getting to his feet. "For all I know, Phantom got caught up in another discussion with Vanity again and still hasn't given up talking about how great the two are with each other."

Fenton grabs his staff and heads for the exit of the central core, giving a nod to Responsibility before leaving. The suited Phantom in turn nods, taking the reigns of the central core and calling up a few nearby emotions to take Fenton's and Phantom's place in their absence...

-

"Unmotivated, uncaring.... Oh, excuse me. I've been going on so long, I've forgotten about how we have to keep moving!" Phantom finally allows himself pause, taking in the crowd around him. Jack and Dash look bored, Lancer looks pleased at all the alliteration he's been using in the past while, Valerie looks really torn up about something, his friends had stopped listening and had gone on chattering about something else and Maddie is watching him with a critical eye.

"Yes yes, now then. Ahead should be Happiness and Sadness, luckily the two are very civil with most of the other emotions. They live together in the complex up ahead!" Phantom declares in an attempt to shake the crew following them out of the apparent stupor.

"I take it that as this 'Halfa' you so refer to yourself as, these emotions are genuine?" Maddie asks, not letting her gaze leave the strange ghost like creature leading them through the mindscape. Everything about Phantom is wrong, he's not even a ghost! But he's made of ectoplasm in some way, and has the capacity for emotions. Is he made of physical matter and ectoplasm? Impossible, but..

"Of course, and please excuse my rudeness when I say you don't know as much about ectoplasmic entities as you want to believe. Why not, instead of insisting on my lack of humanity you seem so focused on, you take in the fact that I am something different, and use this opportunity to do proper research?" Phantom intones with a hint of his well known cocky smirk, but dulled down. Clearly the smirking is more for his other half.

"Are you questioning what has been fundamental about ghost science since the beginning of the field?" Maddie roars injudiciously, causing everyone to wince. How dare this ghost like creature call her wrong?! Has he studied ectoplasm before? What does he know? When did he become a he...?

'Are you going to tell me Aristotle was right about the Earth being the center of the universe while you're at it?" Phantom remarks dryly.

"What? I? You?" Maddie stutters incomprehensibly for a minute. Lancer chuckles though, that was quite the funny joke. The teal huntress in question though had turned red in the face.

"That's not relevant to this! Astrology and Ectobiology are two completely different things!" she shouts, standing over the jumpsuited ghost. Phantom in turn lets out a small "tsk" in response, not backing down as his eyes meet Maddie's gaze.

"Yes, they may be different branches of scientific study, but at least in the Astrology part of this discussion, someone had the brains to invent a way to fact check. What actual ghost studying have you done Mrs. Ghost Scientist?" the ghost bites, tapping his staff again with authority.

Maddie growls. Who does this kid think he is? Oh yeah, right. The so called Hero of Amity Park. "I'll have you know that this situation is a partaking in an experiment right now! And with the full ghosts we tested it on, the facts were proven true!"

"Proven true?" another shadow of the signature Phantom smirk. "Or did you just see things the way you wanted them to be seen? After all, didn't you say you found echos of emotion based on memory in the other ghosts? Who's to say those weren't real emotions, and you were so caught up in your little fundamentals it never crossed your mind to check that?"

Maddie can feel herself shaking. Phantom has a real attitude problem and it's seriously getting on her nerves. Phantom will not be making a mockery of her life's work!

"Are you mad because I might be right?" the ghost intones again, and the teenagers in the group (minus Valerie) let out a loud and classic "oooooooh!" at the statement while Maddie continues to fume at the teenage ghost like thing who thinks he knows more than her.

Jack walks over and puts a hand on Maddie's shoulder to calm her before she explodes. "Cool it Mads, he's not worth it right now," Jack sighs. The red in his wife's face fades, but she's still very clearly upset about the exchange that just took place. Phantom may not be able to smirk like his real self, but she can just imagine the cocky look said real self would have if she was facing him right now.

"Look, all I'm asking for is an open mind, you're stuck in mine right now after all. As a scientist, start asking the right questions," Phantom finishes before finally backing down and turning around to lead the group once more. "Come on, Happiness and Sadness are waiting."

The group moves ahead, leaving Maddie in their wake speechless and burnt out of her anger. Tucker is at the back of the group and takes in the huntress's face before chuckling.

"Wow Mrs. F. You just got roasted!"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've got a Tumblr, you know! Browa123, like all of my social media!
> 
> Also, if you like the way I write Danny, then why not check out the new RP blog I made for him! https://hybrid-phantom.tumblr.com/  
> It's where I'm gonna put all the DP stuff so my main blog gets a bit less cluttered.


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